Launch of Jay Z’s pricey Barneys collection a snore

Welcome to the Jay Zzzzzzzzzz collection.

More gawkers than shoppers showed up for the controversial launch of Jay Z’s highly touted, limited-edition, luxury holiday collection at Barneys — where the buzz Wednesday was more about the rapper’s sky-high prices than his cutting-edge design.

Photos by Marcus Santos/New York Daily News

Schimmer, who described herself as the “oldest hip-hop fan in Philadelphia,” is a huge Jay Z aficionado, part of the reason she made the two-hour drive from the City of Brotherly Love.

But after seeing the lackluster response from shoppers and the prices — ranging from $ 70 for the cheapest T-shirt to $ 58,000 for an alligator-skin coat — Schimmer wasn’t optimistic about Jay Z’s sales.

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The logo for the rapper’s limited-edition luxury line. ‘BNY NYC SCC’ combines Shawn Corey Carter’s initials with Barneys New York’s and a nod to New York City.

He said he blames the NYPD and not Jay Z.

“I don’t know how much he can do about it,” Davey said. “Plus, he came out and said he would meet with them,” he added, referring to the performer’s latest public promise to head a council on racial profiling and give 100% of the sale’s proceeds to his foundation, which helps disadvantaged students pay for college.

But even for a good cause, the hefty prices put the goods beyond the reach of most New Yorkers.

“It’s expensive. The T-shirts are like $ 1,000,” said one young woman who declined to give her name. She perused for 10 minutes but left without buying anything.

Barneys CEO Mark Lee also showed up Wednesday morning to get a personal tour of the “New York Holiday” collection.

Lee, who didn’t show at a City Council hearing probing racial profiling at stores later in the morning, milled around the darkened gallery.

He asked employees if there was a lot of interest in the collection before he left around 10 a.m.

A few hours later, security guards were overheard talking about the lack of foot traffic.

“It’s been trickle, trickle, trickle” all day, one of them said to the other.